Man City vs West Ham: Three Things We Learned

Manchester City extended their 100% record in the Premier League to three wins out of three. Pep Guardiola made a handful of changes from the game in midweek, as they proved to be profitable.

The Blues, who now sit top of the table on goal difference, go into the international break hoping that it won’t stutter their impressive performances, even at this point in the season.

Here are three things we learned from City’s 3-1 win over West Ham:

Liquid Football

Pep Guardiola brings various aspects. Not only does he enhance player performance, bring a sense of professionalism, he also tends to play football which is extremely pleasing on the eye (if you didn’t know already).

Throughout the first half, the Citizens were in cruise control. The ball was pinging about all over the pitch, from Caballero to Aguero, and it was frankly incredible to watch.

A rapid start – underpinned by the attacking trio of Nolito, Sterling and Aguero – yielded a slick and wonderfully composed finished from Sterling, putting City 1-0 up after just 7 minutes – conveniently the same as his shirt number which was buzzing about the pitch all day.

It was the polished passing that caught the eye throughout the first half – leaving City fans, including me, in absolute awe.

Rejuvinated Raheem

Raheem Sterling, the £50m flop, had yet another fantastic showing. Last season, Sterling did little to justify his price tag. This season however, not only does he look rejuvinated, he looks like a completely different player – one that you would pay that sort of money for.

Not only has the elecric England winger benefited from Guardiola’s arrival, many others have improved too – Willy Caballero and Aleksandr Kolarov for example, who both looked dead certains to be shown the door this summer.

As many believed his true talent wouldn’t be showcased at City, he now seems to be the first name on the team sheet every week. Blues fans feel really refreshed that Pep has been able to get Raheem on his side, and is now showing us all his undeniable talent.

He has been involved in five goals in four games so far this campaign. In contrast, he had a hand in just four goals in his last seventeen for Manuel Pellegrini.

Reinvigorated by Pep.

Derby Preparations

As the ever so enjoyable international break looms; it’s possibly the worst time for it to come about for the Blues, especially as we gain momentumn. The same could be said about our rivals, who have also had a perfect start.

In the post match interview, Pep described the win over the Hammers as ‘our best league performance thus far’. It’s no secret that we’ll need to at least replicate it at Old Trafford.

With Gundogan, Bravo and Sane all in contention for welcomed minutes in the Derby, Pep has numerous decisions to make regarding the team sheet.

Guardiola vs Mourinho renew their rivalry on September 10th – and as the footballing world heads turn towards North England – you can be sure this one will be an absolute classic.

Of course, in the end, all City fans would hope for a positive and credible result as both sides of Manchester – the blue and the red – commence.